Naked meat or shrink-wrapped meat?
December 1, 2010 11:00 AM Subscribe
In an ordinary supermarket, is there really any difference between the meat sold in the butcher case and the meat that's wrapped in plastic in the regular meat section?
("About three bucks a pound" is my reflex answer too. I'm curious about quality.)
I've never seen different per-pound prices between the refrigerated shelves and the butcher case, either, except that the butcher case tended to have more of the higher-priced cuts (Angus beef, t-bone steaks) in it. But a t-bone in the refrigerated shelves and a t-bone in the butcher case were priced the same at all of the supermarkets I've patronized.
posted by Sidhedevil at 11:09 AM on December 1, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by Sidhedevil at 11:09 AM on December 1, 2010 [1 favorite]
Best answer: The shrink-wrap will be somewhat drier than the fresh cut, because both sides will have been cut and exposed to the elements for an undetermined amount of time. If you have the first cut off the end, only one side will have been touching air. If you have a center cut, it will have max juiciness.
But a lot of this is over-thinking, something you likely won't notice, or something that will become a moot point, depending on how long you have it before cooking, or the cooking method itself.
The primary reason to get it cut from a trusted butcher? Because he can tell what he has that's good.
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 11:14 AM on December 1, 2010 [1 favorite]
But a lot of this is over-thinking, something you likely won't notice, or something that will become a moot point, depending on how long you have it before cooking, or the cooking method itself.
The primary reason to get it cut from a trusted butcher? Because he can tell what he has that's good.
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 11:14 AM on December 1, 2010 [1 favorite]
Depending on the store, the stuff wrapped in plastic could have been cut up and wrapped by the meat guys in store or shipped from a larger central processing center. In either case, the animal was killed a whiles ago and the meat refrigerated so I'm not sure if one is better than the other in terms of quality. That's not to say the store isn't getting the meat in the butcher case from a different and possibly better source than the pre-wrapped meat.
posted by vilandra at 11:14 AM on December 1, 2010
posted by vilandra at 11:14 AM on December 1, 2010
I don't believe we have any difference in price at our local supermarket between the two. The pre-wrapped stuff is for convenience - they're perfectly happy to take a big package of meat and divide it into smaller ones or the like, but it means people can grab what they want and go rather than wait in line to request a precise amount.
Now, there's meat that's not from the supermarket, for example some brand-name ground beef or pre-made burgers or Foster Farms chicken, and that stuff of course is different, but the 'lean beaf for stew' is the same whichever place they take it from.
posted by Lady Li at 11:42 AM on December 1, 2010
Now, there's meat that's not from the supermarket, for example some brand-name ground beef or pre-made burgers or Foster Farms chicken, and that stuff of course is different, but the 'lean beaf for stew' is the same whichever place they take it from.
posted by Lady Li at 11:42 AM on December 1, 2010
Best answer: I used to work in a butcher's shop, and used to see all sorts of shenanigans done with the meat. If the stuff is pre-wrapped and sealed at the factory, then you know at least the butcher hasn't done anything other than inspect the packages for holes and stick a price-tag on them. Look for a best-before date, and make sure you are well east of it, and you should be fine.
As for stuff that's cut and wrapped by the butcher in the store, and put in the display refrigerator for sale, here's a few handy-dandy tips to buying meat:
1) Inspect the meat for dark spots that don't belong. That includes hamburger. This means the meat was cut the previous day, and has been "doctored" to make it look fresh for sale the following day. Avoid anything butterflied for this reason, unless you specifically ask the butcher to do it for you right then and there.
2) Anything sprinkled with BBQ salt and packaged, run away very fast. It's usually chicken treated this way, and that's to mask the off-flavours of almost-bad chicken. (This may be a uniquely Canadian thing, to sprinkle BBQ salt on meat before sale).
3) Poke your nose in the butcher area, if you can. Is it clean? Does it smell funny? Run away very fast if it does.
4) Like CPB says, quiz your butcher. The ones who know their stuff, awesome. Cultivate their friendship. If they can't answer your questions, or if they give you jazz hands, run away very fast.
5) The stuff in the display case, as Rusty Brooks mentions, was cut more recently - it looks better on display that way. Here in Canada, fancier meat preparations like chicken kiev are sold in the display case along with the choicest steaks and the storemade sausage. You'll also get thicker steaks in the display case than those wrapped and in the refrigerator. This might be why you notice a price difference; the more expensive stuff is behind glass.
Bottom line, find yourself a decent butcher you like and trust, and he or she can advise on the best meats for whatever it is you're planning on preparing.
posted by LN at 11:46 AM on December 1, 2010 [12 favorites]
As for stuff that's cut and wrapped by the butcher in the store, and put in the display refrigerator for sale, here's a few handy-dandy tips to buying meat:
1) Inspect the meat for dark spots that don't belong. That includes hamburger. This means the meat was cut the previous day, and has been "doctored" to make it look fresh for sale the following day. Avoid anything butterflied for this reason, unless you specifically ask the butcher to do it for you right then and there.
2) Anything sprinkled with BBQ salt and packaged, run away very fast. It's usually chicken treated this way, and that's to mask the off-flavours of almost-bad chicken. (This may be a uniquely Canadian thing, to sprinkle BBQ salt on meat before sale).
3) Poke your nose in the butcher area, if you can. Is it clean? Does it smell funny? Run away very fast if it does.
4) Like CPB says, quiz your butcher. The ones who know their stuff, awesome. Cultivate their friendship. If they can't answer your questions, or if they give you jazz hands, run away very fast.
5) The stuff in the display case, as Rusty Brooks mentions, was cut more recently - it looks better on display that way. Here in Canada, fancier meat preparations like chicken kiev are sold in the display case along with the choicest steaks and the storemade sausage. You'll also get thicker steaks in the display case than those wrapped and in the refrigerator. This might be why you notice a price difference; the more expensive stuff is behind glass.
Bottom line, find yourself a decent butcher you like and trust, and he or she can advise on the best meats for whatever it is you're planning on preparing.
posted by LN at 11:46 AM on December 1, 2010 [12 favorites]
Response by poster: Boy, are you people literal--"three bucks a pound" was a joke! (A bad one, I guess.) But thanks for the info, esp. from the ex-butchers among us.
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posted by scratch at 12:22 PM on December 1, 2010
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posted by scratch at 12:22 PM on December 1, 2010
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The main difference would be that the stuff wrapped in plastic was usually cut at some time earlier than what was in the case - the stuff in the case was mostly cut to demand. Also you could get any quantity you wanted - if you wanted 1.25 pounds of ribeye steak then we'd give you 1 and a half of them if that's what it took. We'd also trim as desired and do any other work people wanted.
posted by RustyBrooks at 11:07 AM on December 1, 2010